LUTHERAN CAMPUS MINISTRY

at the UNIVERSITY OF DELAWARE

Spring Newsletter 2016

A Word from the Chaplain... The Lord has blessed us with a truly wonderful year here at LCM!

It continues to be a privilege and joy to serve with and among such bright, talented, and servant-hearted students. I have particularly enjoyed our Wednesday Bible study conversations this past term, looking deeper into the Word together. A particular highlight of the spring was our retreat at lovely Hack’s Point, Maryland. Many thanks to JoAnne Gross for her generosity in letting us enjoy her home for the weekend! What a great event together, with lively fellowship, shared worship, time on the water, and rich discussions of God’s gifts manifested in and through each of us.

A heartfelt thank you to our Directing Committee members and to JoAnne for their consistent contributions and steady support in helping this ministry to thrive. We are grateful to Josh Kelly, Gerrit Salemink, and Katie King for their work and faithfulness as they complete their service on the committee this spring; blessings and Godspeed! And many warm thanks to all of you, our supporters and friends of the ministry, for your prayers and financial support, as well as for the weekly tasty dinners and monthly work days to which many of you contribute your time and talents!

I am sad to bid farewell to Rachel Jackson, Ellie Brown, and Elena Sassaman, our three graduating seniors. They will be much missed, and I know that wonderful things lie ahead for each of them. I am also excited and curious to see how the Holy Spirit will work in and through these gifted and wise young women in the coming years. Please hold them in your prayers at this time of celebration, transition, and beginning new ventures. May they ever be enfolded and upheld by the love and grace of Jesus.

And now the summer lies ahead for all of us, a season of Sabbath rest and refueling, as well as preparations for the new academic year, which will be upon us before we know it. Our students are off to summer jobs, internships, time with family and friends from home, and many adventures. I look forward to hearing their many stories this fall regarding how they have encountered God’s presence and blessings along the way.

May God bless each of you, and may the light of Christ shine brightly on your path!

In Christ, Mindy †

Mark your calendars! Strawberry Festival: Sunday, June 5th

St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, Wilmington to benefit LCM (following 10 AM service)

LCM Work Day: Saturday, August 13th 2nd Saturday of the month (10 AM—2 PM)

Tuesday Dinners at 6 PM

Signups begin August 1st!

F.I.S.H.—St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, Newark 3rd Friday of the month and preceding Thursday evening

Fundraiser: Saturday, November 5th

St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, Newark to benefit F.I.S.H. (Fellowship in Serving the Hungry) Dinner, silent auction, and basket raffles

With Heartfelt Thanks and Gratitude…

As the 2015 - 2016 school year closes, the Directing Committee of LCM would

like to publicly acknowledge the heart and soul of Chaplain Mindy

Holland. Since her arrival last August, Mindy has worked tirelessly to create

the kind of atmosphere that draws students to want to become actively

involved in LCM and also want to bring their friends along. Because of

Mindy's caring and compassionate nature, the sheer number of engaged

students has tripled as has the ways to be engaged. Weekly dinners & social

outreach continue along with weekly bible study, retreats, game nights,

community outreach, and the ability to hang out together for support.

Mindy, we applaud the important work that you are doing and recognize the

thought, prayer, and mighty effort required to have accomplished so much!

The Directing Committee of LCM

Our Mission Statement: To express our faith in God through fellowship, outreach, and service.

LCM’s Spring Celebration Blessings were overflowing at LCM on Sunday, May 1st, as we hosted

our first Spring Celebration. It was an informal gathering of our

students and their families; congregational advocates; members from

our supporting congregations; Directing Committee members; alumni;

and staff. We feel truly blessed that so many people, who share an

interest in our ministry, came together to meet and mingle. We had an

opportunity to honor our graduating seniors and to thank our outgoing

Directing Committee members. A special thank you to Sandy Betley for

leading the planning committee and to the members of the Directing

Committee and staff for providing the refreshments and decorations.

Thanks also to the students for helping with the setup and cleanup, as

well as to Jeremy Gross for photographing the event and providing the

slideshow in the chapel. We would like to extend a special thank you to

the families who traveled a great distance to be with their students and

to see LCM for the first time.

The spring retreat was held at a family home on the Bohemia River in the

community of Hack’s Point, Maryland. It was an opportunity for the students to

experience group devotions and discussions; worship and communion; water

activities; an evening fire with s’mores; photo opportunities; and creative

experiments with sparklers and photography! It was a much-needed weekend

to decompress before the students returned to campus for the final

weeks of the spring semester.

Spring Retreat on the Bohemia River

Thank you to our outgoing Directing Committee President, Josh Kelly, for his

years of service and dedication to LCM. We wish Josh continued success

with his seminary studies and settling into his new role of dad! Gerrit

Salemink has devoted many years serving as Treasurer and has been an

invaluable technical resource and a wealth of knowledge when managing the

finances. Katie King will be stepping down as a Directing Committee member

in June also as she prepares for the birth of her third child. LCM would like to

express our gratitude to all of these devoted and faithful servants.

We bid farewell and say hello to...

A special thank you to LCM student, Jeremy Gross, for always being the face

behind the camera. He has used his photography skills to document LCM’s events and has created a slideshow to showcase the year. Check out our website for more of his great pictures!

Tuesday Night Dinners

A special thank you to our supporting congregations, Directing Committee

members, alumni, and staff for providing Tuesday dinners throughout the school

year. The students continue to find Tuesday the best day of the week as they

enjoy a home-cooked meal, friendship, fellowship, and devotion. On April 19th,

LCM was blessed with a surprise dinner guest - Bishop Wolfgang Herz-Lane!

We bid farewell to our graduating seniors: Rachel Jackson (President),

Ellie Brown (Vice President and F.I.S.H. Peer Minister) and Elena

Sassaman (Secretary). LCM would like to extend our heartfelt appreciation for their commitment, service, and dedication to the ministry. We wish them Godspeed as they begin the next chapter in their lives. The seniors presented LCM with a lovely digital photo

frame to showcase visual memories of LCM at UD. Thank you!

We welcome our new student executive board for the 2016-2017 academic year: Alex Huey (President), Sarah Fredrick (Vice President), John Barber (3nd term treasurer), Larissa Kubitz (Secretary) and our new Events Coordinator, Leah Fitchett, who is already working on our November fundraiser. We are grateful for Sarah Fredrick who will be continuing as our Social Media Peer Minister for a second year. Maria Faiola will be assuming the role of F.I.S.H. Peer Minister and leading LCM in this ministry.

Elena Sassaman Ellie Brown and Rachel Jackson

Josh Kelly Gerrit Salemink

Alex Huey Sarah Fredrick John Barber Larissa Kubitz Leah Fitchett Maria Faiola

Signups for the fall

semester will begin

August 1st.

Please contact the

LCM office or visit our

website to sign up for

a Tuesday dinner.

Items Needed:

We have two student rooms that could use some gently used 5-drawer dressers and pole lamps. If you are cleaning house, please keep us in mind. Thank you!

Updating our

Mailing List

We are in the process of

updating our database.

If you are receiving our

newsletters, and you no longer wish to

receive them, please email our office

and express your desire to be removed.

Likewise, if you know someone who

would like to receive our newsletter

(only 3 times per year), please email us

their address. Thank you!

Office: 247 Haines St.•Newark, DE 19711•302-368-3078 • Website: http://sites.udel.edu/lutheran-campus-ministry

Contact: JoAnne Gross, Administrative Assistant • Email: Office@LutheransatUD.org

Please continue to pray that this ministry may reflect the love and grace of Christ

and that our students may grow in faith, service, outreach, leadership, and

discipleship through their participation.

The Bonhoeffer House

LCM currently has two student rooms available for rent. A single room is available beginning this

s summer and a space for a female in our double room is available immediately. The house

includes 1 1/2 bathrooms, living room, kitchen, laundry facilities on the property, and central air conditioning. Rent

includes all utilities (electric, gas, and water) and a parking space for one vehicle. All rooms are furnished.

Contact LCM office if you are interested in seeing the house.

STUDENT ROOMS

Property work days

Beginning in February, LCM

started monthly work days on the

second Saturday of the month. It

is amazing the work that has been

accomplished over the past four

months! Thank you doesn’t seem

adequate for all of the volunteers

who have come out to clean the

chapel, make repairs around the property, clean up trash, clean out

gardens, and load up a trailer with yard waste multiple times in the rain

and snow. We also look forward to some much-needed parking lot

repairs this summer. Thank you to Louis and Louise James for having the

right tools and knowledge to remove the dead trees on the property. A

special thank you to Bob and Mary Boord for their continued generosity

and concern for LCM’s property needs!

God’s blessings to all of our dedicated volunteers!

Lutheran Campus Ministry wishes you a peaceful summer!

Are You an

LCM Alum?

Would you like to

reconnect with other alumni? Contact

Emily Pierce at empierce@udel.edu,

and she will add you to the contact list.